Family Business

FEATURED ARTICLES ABOUT FAMILY BUSINESS - PAGE 4

Business executive Jack Gantz died of cardiac arrest on Thursday at Mercy Hospital in San Diego, Calif. He was 76 and lived in Palm Beach. Mr. Gantz was chairman of the board of Empire Brushes Inc., a manufacturer of brooms and household brushes. He joined the family business at its manufacturing plant in Port Chester, N.Y., in 1935, shortly after graduating from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. He became president of the company in 1945, and in 1985 relinquished the post to his son, Joseph.

Two Pompano Beach nursing homes have been sold to a Texas real estate investment trust for $16 million in cash, the buyer announced Monday. The Colonial Palms nursing homes -- two adjacent homes with a total of 247 beds, located next to the North Broward Medical Center -- were purchased by Healthvest of Austin. "We`ve been working on (the deal) for a couple of months, and we`re the financing source for the operator," said Healthvest`s president, Elliott Weir. Healthvest said the nursing homes will be operated under a long-term lease by Trinity Living Centers, a closely held of Williamsburg, Va., company.

Lori Weiner of Coral Springs was all set to receive her greatest birthday present. She and husband Howard were expecting the baby by the due date, which was the day after her birthday. But when she did not go into labor - even a week after her due date _ she feared it might have to be induced. "I tried everything to have the baby come on it's own," she said. "I tried all the old wives tales, like castor oil, Chinese food and Mexican food. I even tried walking, which sent my dog Baxter barking and chasing me all over the house."

BANKING & FINANCE: TresCom International, Inc., announced the appointment of William A. Paquin to chief financial officer .. Bank of North America announced the promotion of Gregory W. Milford to vice president/business and product development manager. MARKETING & SALES: Royce Laboratories, Inc. announced the appointment of Jack Bleau as vice president of sales and marketing. OTHER: The Center for the Fine Arts announced the appointment of Johanna L. Plummer as curator of education ... SabreTech Inc. announced the promotion of Jaime L. Galindo to general manager ... The law firm of Haley, Sinagra & Perez, P.A. announced that Dora F. Kaufman, Esq. has become a partner in the firm ... Clara Boza, director of marketing with the law firm of Steel Hector & Davis, has been elected secretary of the board of directors for the National Law Firm Marketing Association ... Steven G. Weinkle, New York Life Insurance Co. agent & registered representative for NYLIFE Securities Inc., has been named Agent of the Year by the company in recognition for his exceptional dedication and service to his clients ... Gunster, Yoakley, Valdes-Fauli & Stewart, P.A. announced the appointment of Armando J. Tirado as director of the Venezuelan-American Chamber of Commerce in Miami.

Angelo Lencioni`s first year in the fast-food business was about as inspiring as a Big Mac on a stale sesame-seed bun. His 180-seat McDonald`s just north of Chicago`s Loop grossed roughly $1 million in the 12 months following its December 1981 grand opening -- 30 percent less than an average outlet`s revenues. Lencioni, now 48, took a chance. He opened a second McDonald`s near the first in downtown Chicago. But he vowed this restaurant would be different from his first and, for that matter, from any other McDonald`s.

A. Ludwig Klein & Son once repaired the dragon`s claw that kept an emperor healthy. The firm fixed the broken stem on the meerschaum pipe smoked by Kaiser Franz Joseph. And, with loving care and concern for the customer, the owners and operators of this nearly 200-year-old company just as painstakingly restored countless items purchased in dime stores for grandparents on their birthdays and wedding anniversaries. William Karl Klein, 71, said that for two centuries his family has been in the business of preserving the important things in life.

What is the glue that keeps family businesses together? Peace and harmony in the family? Big profits? Religion? No, no and no. What keeps family businesses going from one generation to the next is shared values, says Craig E. Aronoff, founder and director of the Family Enterprise Center at Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, Ga. Aronoff recently spoke about communicating values across generations in the family business at Nova Southeastern University's Family...

For more than a decade, the Kesbehs lived in the Houston area without proper documents, relying on the family's business selling American flags and other banners to get by. Like millions from around the world, the Palestinians were in the United States illegally. They paid taxes, sent their children to school and tried not to be noticed. Then, as pressure mounted on Muslims after the Sept.

When Lou Morano opened his first store in Palm Beach County in the 1980s, he only sold carpet and the market wasn't saturated with flooring retailers. As consumers became more sophisticated and wanted more product options, Morano expanded his inventory to include tile, wood, laminate and natural stone, as well as window treatments. Capitol Carpet & Tile and Window Fashions has since grown into a regional retailer with five Palm Beach locations. Connecting with the community is very important to Morano, he says.

FAMILY BUSINESS. By Anna Murdoch. William Morrow and Co. $19.95. THE DISTANT KINGDOM. By Daphne Wright. Delacorte Press. $17.95. Anna Murdoch`s first novel, In Her Own Image, garnered quite respectable reviews for itself. Murdoch was praised as a natural storyteller, who wrote with lyricism and restraint and a real romantic flair. I wish I had read it because her latest novel, Family Business, doesn`t really strike me as possessing any of those qualities in abundance. Murdoch tells a long story that`s short on lyricism and almost devoid of any romantic aura, despite the fact that the novel focuses on the three passions in the life of heroine Yarrow McLean -- her family, her lover Elliot Weyden and, most important, the newspaper business.